Concrete Mind
My mind is a cement mixer
ever turning, ever tumbling.
Jumbled thoughts and emotions
spin and rotate like the planets,
buzzing in my cerebellum.
On days dreary with impending rain,
the anxiety weighs down my chest.
And I’m heavy as a bag of rocks,
flat and colorless as a concrete slab,
hard and stone cold as cement.
Other days, energy fizzles in my brain,
pure and bright as the summer sun at dawn.
Like effervescent bubbles in the atmosphere,
joyfully rising to meet the cornflower blue skies,
higher than the Empire State Building.
Then the twilight creeps in shades of pink,
and the first stars beckon me to sleep.
I fill my lungs with crisp spring air,
my eyes close, my mind drifts away…
perhaps to dream of softer tomorrows.
Colleen Keller Breuning © 2025
April 12, 2025
Happy Saturday! It’s funny how one prompt can push you to write in a different direction. When I was thinking of a construction vehicle, I remembered how obsessed my son Vince was with cement mixers when he was little. We used to count the number of cement mixers every morning on the way to his pre-school in Ft. Lauderdale, and he just delighted in how many he saw every day. It was a great way to teach him how to count, as well. He loved playing with his Tonka construction vehicles, and of course the cement mixer was his favorite one.
You might ask, what exactly is a concrete mind? Is it a sound mind, a solid mind, a stubborn mind? In this poem my mind is the cement mixer, always turning, with my emotions and thoughts being stirred up as the cement. Maybe my words are the concrete or the construction or building that results from the workings of my mind. I don’t know, it sounds ridiculous trying to explain it LOL. It isn’t very philosophical, it’s just that I love to play with metaphors and similes in my poetry. And maybe, just maybe, someone out there can relate. But no matter what – I write for myself, because it’s my form of therapy and creativity and it brings me joy.
So do yourselves a favor and rest your cement mixer minds, everyone! Stop worrying and take time to focus on that which brings you peace and joy! Love you all!
Xoxo,
Colleen
Inspiration: “Sentimental” by Porcupine Tree
Ecrits Blogophilia Week 41.16 – Concrete
Hard Bonus: Mention a famous city building (Empire State Building)
Easy Bonus: Include a construction vehicle (Cement Mixer)
Colleen Keller Breuning 
Nicely done! And a cool use of metaphors and similes to convey your emotions and thoughts – via a cement mixer, HA! KUDOS, Dear Earthling! ❤